Briefing.com: Stock Market Update – 15:00 ET

May 28, 2010 (Briefing.com via COMTEX) -- Stock Market Update

Updated: 28-May-10

The market at 15:00 ET

Dow: -80.34...

Nasdaq: -15.04... S&P: -8.76...

NYSE Vol: 835 mln.. Adv: 1015.. Dec: 1973

Nasdaq Vol: 1.49 bln.. Adv: 792.. Dec: 1826

Moving the Market

Sector Watch

Fitch downgrades Spain's debt Geopolitical tensions continue to stem from North Korea Personal income increases as expected, but spending comes in flat rather than with the modest increase that had been expected Upcoming holiday weekend leads to dampened volume

Strong: food retailers; department stores; independent power producers; gas utilities

Weak: oil and gas equipment; diversified chemicals; auto makers; regional banks; asset management; auto makers; footwear; specialty stores; gold

15:00 ET

Dow -80.34 at 10178.65, Nasdaq -15.04 at 2262.64, S&P -8.76 at 1094.30

[BRIEFING.COM] Stocks have staged a strong rebound to their best levels since midsession. The move comes without any individual catalyst or news item. However, the move has been helped by the light trading volume, which often exaggerates the moves of stocks. ..NYSE Adv/Dec 1015/1973. ..NASDAQ Adv/Dec 792/1826.

14:30 ET

Dow -137.93 at 10121.06, Nasdaq -30.27 at 2247.41, S&P -15.56 at 1087.50

[BRIEFING.COM] After failing to sustain a rebound off of earlier depths, the S&P 500 recently succumbed to another bout of selling pressure, which took it to a fresh session low just beneath 1085. However, technical support has helped the S&P 500 make a modest bounce off of that low.

Volatility has climbed in conjunction with the stock market's recent retreat. As such, the Volatility Index is now up nearly 11%.

Treasuries have ticked higher in response to the recent action. The benchmark 10-year Note is now up 20 ticks to its best level of the session. The move has put its yield a couple of points back below 3.30%.

14:00 ET

Dow -143.75 at 10115.24, Nasdaq -31.82 at 2245.86, S&P -16.27 at 1086.79

[BRIEFING.COM] Stocks have started to drift back to their session lows as sellers redouble their efforts. Energy stocks, financials, materials, and industrials are under the most pressure -- each sector is down in excess of 2%.

Oil prices have also fallen under renewed selling. The commodity is now down 1.4% to $73.50 per barrel. Its weakness has dragged the CRB Commodity Index down 1.3%.

13:30 ET

Dow -95.15 at 10163.84, Nasdaq -23.39 at 2254.29, S&P -10.30 at 1092.76

[BRIEFING.COM] Stocks have bounced back a bit from their recent slide, which was prompted by news that analysts at ratings agency Fitch downgraded the debt of Spain to AA+ from AAA. Still, losses remain broad.

Volatility has climbed in response to the recent action. As such, the Volatility Index is now up more than 8%.

However, Treasuries have been unable to extend their gains. Despite that, the benchmark 10-year Note remains near its session high.

13:05 ET

Dow -117.15 at 10141.84, Nasdaq -26.77 at 2250.91, S&P -12.37 at 1090.69

[BRIEFING.COM] News that ratings agency Fitch downgraded the debt of Spain has caused the major market averages to sink to session lows. The news wasn't a complete surprise to market pundits, but the headline has certainly hampered stocks amid this session's low volume trade.

Stocks had spent the morning and early afternoon stuck in negative territory with varied losses. The lackluster, low volume trade isn't unusual ahead of a long, holiday weekend (U.S. markets will be closed on Monday in observance of Memorial Day).

Despite the anticipation of a slow session, there have been a few headlines of note. Stocks fell under a flurry of selling with increased chatter about intensified geopolitical turmoil involving North Korea. Though they were able to bounce back, stocks suddenly fell to fresh session lows amid more recent news that analysts at Fitch downgraded Spain's debt rating to AA+. The headline also put pressure on the euro, which now stands at $1.232.

Fitch's decision to downgrade Spain's debt wasn't a total surprise, though. Rather, many had expected such a move given the persistent fiscal problems that face the country.

The reaction of stocks to the recent headlines shows what issues the market appears most concerned about, especially since economic data and corporate headlines have had limited influence over trade.

Personal income for April increased in-line with expectations, but total personal spending for the month was flat even though an increase had been expected. However, core personal consumption expenditures made a slight monthly increase for the second straight month, as had been expected.

The University of Michigan released its final Consumer Confidence Survey for May. It made a slight improvement to exceed what many had expected.

Meanwhile, the Chicago Purchasing Managers Index for May slipped from the five-year high that was recorded in April.

In terms of corporate news, Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A 52.69, -0.32) it will acquire East Resources for almost $5 billion in cash and a handful of retailers released their quarterly results, but the overall quality of their reports was arguably mixed.

12:30 ET

Dow -45.95 at 10213.04, Nasdaq -11.35 at 2266.33, S&P -4.86 at 1098.20

[BRIEFING.COM] Stocks have extended their bounce off of morning lows, which were set roughly one hour ago. The move hasn't really been caused by any particular news item or other trading catalyst, but rather the result of a moderation in selling pressure.

Despite the upturn, Treasuries continue to show strength after a beat down in the prior session. Specifically, the benchmark 10-year Note dropped more than one full point on Thursday, but it is now up a solid 15 ticks. Its yield is now at 3.30%.

12:00 ET

Dow -58.61 at 10200.38, Nasdaq -17.58 at 2260.10, S&P -6.53 at 1096.53

[BRIEFING.COM] The S&P 500 was recently down as much as 1.0%, but it has almost cut that loss in half. The upward move has been generally broad based, but health care stocks have shown some of the most strength. The sector, which is the third-largest sector by market weight in the S&P 500, has made its way to a 0.5% gain.

Still, tech and financials, respectively the two largest sectors by market weight, continue to weigh on the broader market. They are down 1.0% and 1.2%, respectively.

11:35 ET

Dow -78.30 at 10180.69, Nasdaq -20.92 at 2256.76, S&P -9.38 at 1093.68

[BRIEFING.COM] Stocks continue to drift lower so that the major equity averages are now at their worst levels of the day. However, the light volume and choppy trading conditions may lead to volatility and difficulty making predictions about the stock market's movements. ..NYSE Adv/Dec 952/1936. ..NASDAQ Adv/Dec 690/1778.

11:05 ET

Dow -65.45 at 10193.54, Nasdaq -13.95 at 2263.72, S&P -7.40 at 1095.66

[BRIEFING.COM] The market just returned to the morning lows so that the S&P 500 is now down roughly 0.6%. The major averages have been chopping back and forth since the open, although the latest downtick coincides with a few new headlines that have suggested the recent geopolitical turmoil involving North Korea may lead to "all out war." While the escalating tensions have been evident for over a week now, the latest comments serve as a reminder that headline risk remains.

Corporate news flow remains light, and it is likely to stay so for the remainder of the day. Still, trading could get choppy as the day progresses, since volume is likely to dry up as trading desks clear out early ahead of the holiday weekend (U.S. markets are closed on Monday in observance of Memorial Day). ..NYSE Adv/Dec 952/1936. ..NASDAQ Adv/Dec 690/1778.

10:30 ET

Dow -44.90 at 10214.09, Nasdaq -6.86 at 2270.82, S&P -4.16 at 1098.90

[BRIEFING.COM] Commodities prices have cooled after they had staged strong gains in each of the two previous sessions. As such, the CRB Commodity Index is currently down 0.2%, but up 2.4% week-to-date. Despite such a strong weekly performance, the CRB is still on pace for a monthly loss of more than 7%.

Oil prices have bounced back into positive territory to trade with a 0.4% gain at $74.85 per barrel. They had been down as low as $73.86 per barrel just one hour ago.

Natural gas prices are strong. The commodity was recently quoted at $4.37 per MMBtu, up 1.7%.

Gold prices are down for the second straight session. The yellow metal was recently quoted with a 0.4% loss at $1206.50 per ounce.

Silver isn't any stronger. It is also down 0.4% to trade at $18.40 per ounce.

10:00 ET

Dow -40.97 at 10220.27, Nasdaq -7.24 at 2270.54, S&P -3.66 at 1099.40

[BRIEFING.COM] Stocks continue to trade with modest losses, while the breadth of the slide has been broad. As such, consumer staples stocks and utilities stocks make up the only two sectors to sport gains -- they are up 0.1% and 0.4%, respectively.

The University of Michigan just released its final Consumer Confidence Survey for May. It came in at 73.6, which is a slight improvement from the 73.3 that had been previously recorded for the month. It also exceeds the 73.2 that many had come to expect.

At 9:45 AM ET the Chicago Purchasing Managers Index for May was released. It came in at 59.7, which is below the 60.0 that had been expected and down from the five-year high of 63.8 that was recorded in April.

The data has had little effect on trade.

Advancing Sectors: Consumer Staples (+0.1%), Utilities (+0.4%)

Declining Sectors: Energy (-0.6%), Materials (-0.6%), Financials (-0.4%), Industrials (-0.4%), Tech (-0.3%), Health Care (-0.3%), Telecom (-0.2%)

Unchanged: Consumer Discretionary

09:45 ET

Dow -62.13 at 10196.86, Nasdaq -16.90 at 2260.78, S&P -7.79 at 1095.27

[BRIEFING.COM] Stocks have slipped in the opening minutes of trade. That move marks a pullback from the stock market's prior session surge, which saw the S&P 500 climb more than 3%. The early action also does little to help the stock market limit its monthly loss, which currently stands at roughly 7%. Stocks haven't had such a bad monthly performance since the stock market dropped 11% in February 2009.

Energy stocks are under the most pressure this morning. The sector is currently down 1.2%. Part of its weakness is owed to a reversal in oil prices, which are currently down 0.6% to $74.10 per barrel after they had been above $75 per barrel just a couple of hours ago.

09:15 ET

Market is Closed

[BRIEFING.COM] S&P futures vs fair value: +1.30. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +5.30. Stock futures have been stuck in choppy trade for most of the morning, but they currently point to a flat start for the session. The tepid tone comes as many traders get an early start on the long weekend (markets will be closed Monday in observance of Memorial Day). With fewer participants on hand, trading volume is expected to be light, which has a tendency to lead to exaggerated moves among stocks. With that in mind, it will be interesting to see how stocks trade near their 200-day moving average, which stands near 1105 for the S&P 500. Action around the technical line is likely to make for a key theme to trade since many market participants remain largely unresponsive to economic data, the latest of which showed an in-line monthly increase in personal income, but flat spending.

09:05 ET

Market is Closed

[BRIEFING.COM] S&P futures vs fair value: +0.70. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +4.50. U.S. stock futures currently trade with a slight lead over fair value, while advancing issues outnumber decliners by almost 2-to-1 in Germanyâ??s DAX, which is presently up just 0.2%. E.On and Daimler (DAI) are atop the list of leading movers, while Deutsche Boerse and Deutsche Bank (DB) are among the worst laggards. In France, the CAC is down fractionally, though its advancers also outnumber its decliners by nearly 2-to-1. Tech stocks are faring the best; they are currently up 1.3%. Meanwhile, basic materials plays are down 0.8%, which makes them the worst performers. Britainâ??s FTSE has made its way to a 0.3% gain amid broad-based support. Vodafone is a primary leader at the moment, while shares of Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A) have shown strength of their own following news that the company will acquire East Resources for $4.7 billion in cash. However, fellow energy play BP Plc (BP) has been a drag on trade. In Asia, stocks staged strong gains as they followed the lead of other major markets. Japanâ??s Nikkei climbed 1.3%. Fanuc LTD was a primary leader, while Fast Retailing added support. Overall, though, oil and gas stocks were the best performers; they advanced 3.2%. Oil and gas plays were also strong in Hong Kongâ??s Hang Seng, which advanced 1.7%. PetroChina (PTR) was a primary leader, but banking issues HSBC (HBC) and China Construction Bank boasted big gains of their own. Tencent Holdings was among the weaker performers. Action was much more lackluster in mainland China, where the Shanghai Composite finished flat, even though decliners had a slight edge over advancers. Financials were divided as Bank of China and China Life Insurance staged gains, but Industrial & Commercial Bank and China Merchant Bank faltered.

08:35 ET

Market is Closed

[BRIEFING.COM] S&P futures vs fair value: +1.10. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +6.00. Stock futures are off of their morning highs, but they continue to trade with a modest lead over fair value following the latest dose of data. Personal income for April increased 0.4%, as had been widely expected. Income for the prior month also increased 0.4%. As for personal spending, it was flat for April, even though a 0.3% increase had been widely anticipated after a 0.6% increase in the prior month. Core personal consumption expenditures, a closely watched barometer for inflationary pressures, made a monthly increase of just 0.1% for the second straight month, as had been expected.

08:00 ET

Market is Closed

[BRIEFING.COM] S&P futures vs fair value: +2.80. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +8.80. The stock market surged 3% higher on Thursday, but the follow through has been mixed as stock futures traded with little direction overnight. However, stock futures recently pushed to morning highs, so that the S&P 500 looks like it will open at its 200-day moving average. Action is expected to be slow this session, since many trading desks will be thinly staffed ahead of the long, Memorial Day weekend. Still, the light volume could make for more dramatic swings among stocks. Corporate news flow has been rather limited, though Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A) announced it will acquire East Resources for almost $5 billion in cash and a handful of retailers are out with quarterly results. There are a number of economic releases coming up, including personal income and spending figures for April (8:30 AM ET), the Chicago Purchasing Managers Index for May (9:45 AM ET), and the final Consumer Confidence Survey for May from University of Michigan (9:55 AM ET).

06:35 ET

Market is Closed

[BRIEFING.COM] FTSE...5238.48...+43.10...+0.80%. DAX...5972.77...+35.60...+0.60%.

06:35 ET

Market is Closed

[BRIEFING.COM] Nikkei...9762.98...+123.30...+1.30%. Hang Seng...19766.71...+335.30...+1.70%.

06:35 ET

Market is Closed

[BRIEFING.COM] S&P futures vs fair value: +1.00. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +3.30.

16:35 ET

Dow +284.54 at 10258.99, Nasdaq +81.80 at 2277.68, S&P +35.11 at 1103.06

[BRIEFING.COM] Stocks surged in high volume as market participants showed a willingness to take on risk after China conveyed a sense of confidence in Europe.

A positive tone permeated trade for the entire session. Many media sources said the initial catalyst was a denial by China about possible reviews of European debt holdings. Though that was interpreted as a vote of confidence in the continent that has caused so much concern related to systemic risk amid the persistent fiscal problems of Portugal, Italy, Ireland, Greece, and Spain, the news item doesn't do anything to change circumstances that currently face Europe.

Despite lingering concerns, Europe's major bourses still rallied in excess of 3% and the euro sprinted to a 1.5% gain against the greenback.

Domestic markets shared in the improved sentiment. The upbeat tone persisted for the entire session and even intensified into the close. In turn, the stock market settled at a session high with more than 98% of the names in the S&P 500 closing with a gain.

The strongest move was made by financials. They tacked on a collective gain of 4.5% as insurers and diversified financial services plays spiked.

Energy stocks were also especially strong. The sector climbed 4.2%. Higher oil prices helped as contracts for the energy component closed pit trade with a 4.2% gain at $74.50 per barrel. Oil prices have climbed more than 8% during the course of the past two sessions.

Advancing volume on the NYSE totaled almost 1.4 billion shares, which is close to the average total trading volume for the NYSE over the past 50 sessions. Advancing volume had a near 10-to-1 advantage over declining volume.

Though strong volume suggested that there was plenty of conviction behind the S&P 500's move above 1100, the stock market finds itself face-to-face with its 200-day moving average near 1105, which could be a point of significant resistance.

Treasuries had trouble this session. Specifically, the benchmark 10-year Note dropped more than one full point so that its yield climbed toward 3.35% after it had been down below 3.10% just two days ago. Treasuries failed to benefit from results of the latest 7-year Notes auction, which were generally solid.

Economic data got little more than a cursory mention amid this session's surge. The second estimate for first quarter GDP showed that the economy expanded at an annualized rate of 3.0%, which is down from the 3.2% increase that came with the advance estimate and below the 3.3% increase that many had come to expect.

Initial jobless claims for the week ended May 22 totaled 460,000, which is a bit above the 455,000 claims that had been widely expected. Continuing claims came down from 4.66 million to 4.61 million, which is in-line with what had been widely anticipated.

Advancing Sectors: Financials (+4.5%), Energy (+4.2%), Materials (+3.9%), Tech (+3.5%), Consumer Discretionary (+3.5%), Industrials (+3.3%), Telecom (+2.4%), Utilities (+2.1%), Consumer Staples (+1.9%), Health Care (+1.9%)

Declining Sectors: (None)

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